1. Field of the Invention
This invention is directed toward a roofing tool. The invention is more particularly directed toward a bladed roofing tool with projecting teeth to be used in repairing or demolishing a roof including removing roofing materials such as shingles and sheathing boards.
2. Description of the Related Art Including Information Disclosed Under CFR xc2xa7xc2xa71.97-1.99
Many bladed roofing tools are known. Most of these known tools have a blade, for use in prying or lifting up shingles, and nail receiving slots in the front edge of the blade for use in removing shingle nails left in the roof as the shingles are removed. Examples of such tools are shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,086,699 and 5,280,676 by way of example. However a great deal of energy must still be expended in removing the roofing material and nails since the wide blades are difficult to drive under the shingles. Further, the known bladed tools are not well suited for lifting large pieces of material such as roof sheathing boards, used to support the shingles, when repairing or demolishing a roof. The known tools have difficulty in getting between the boards and the framing members which support them, and it is difficult to obtain the necessary leverage to lift the boards. Also, the tools are not particularly suited for easily lifting framing nails, which nails often remain in the roof when the sheathing boards are removed. The framing nails usually become securely embedded in the wood after a period of time and the slots in the known tools for receiving shingle nails are not deep enough to provide sufficient leverage to easily lift the framing nails. Often, closely adjacent shingle nails remain in the roof when the shingles are lifted and the known tools usually are not able easily to lift two or more of such nails simultaneously. It is time consuming to remove these closely adjacent nails one at a time.
It is the purpose of the present invention to provide an improved tool that is able, from its construction, to more easily be inserted under roofing material. It is another purpose of the present invention to provide a roofing tool that is able to provide more leverage to lift both small pieces of roofing material, such as shingles and shingle nails, and also larger pieces of roofing material such as sheathing boards, and also the larger framing nails associated with such boards and the framing members supporting such boards. It is another purpose of the present invention to provide roofing tools which can more easily simultaneously lift two or more shingle nails from a roof, particularly closely adjacent shingle nails, when removing shingles.
In accordance with one form of the present invention, a roofing tool is provided with a flat blade having a front edge and a rear edge. At least one nail receiving slot is provided in the front edge of the blade for use in removing shingle nails left in the roof as shingles and/or sheathing boards are removed and for removing framing nails as sheathing boards are removed. The bladed tool includes two teeth projecting forwardly from the front edge of the blade, one on either side of the nail receiving slot or slots, at least the front ends of the teeth adapted to easily slide under roofing material. The inner sides of the teeth are beveled to allow the inner sides of the teeth to also lift shingle nails.
The front ends of the teeth can be pushed under shingles on a roof and the blade is then levered up about the front ends of the teeth, or about the rear edge of the blade, to help remove the shingles. Any shingle nails left in the roof after the shingles are removed can be removed with the nail slot or slots and/or with the beveled inner sides of the teeth. The slots alone or in combination with the beveled inner sides of the teeth can be used to remove two shingle nails simultaneously. If any framing nails are encountered they can also be removed with a nail slot.
The front ends of the teeth are preferably spaced apart a distance greater than the normal width of roof framing members which members support roofing material such as sheathing boards, tin sections, etc. This allows the teeth to straddle a framing member with the teeth located under a sheathing board. Levering the teeth up by pivoting the blade about the back edge of the blade, while the back edge is on the framing member, will raise the sheathing board off the framing member.
The front ends of the two teeth are preferably pointed. This allows the front ends of the teeth to be easily inserted under shingles on the sheathing boards. The pointed front ends of the teeth, being spaced apart, also allow the tool to more easily straddle a framing member.
In one embodiment of the invention, the two teeth extend forward from the sides of the front edge of the blade. The two teeth are relatively narrow, straight sided, spaced apart, and parallel. The teeth are pointed just at the front end. At least one, and preferably several, nail receiving slots are provided in the front edge of the blade between the teeth.
In another embodiment of the invention, the teeth extend from nearly the entire length of the front edge and each tooth tapers to a point, the points spaced apart.
The blade, with the projecting teeth, makes it easier to lever up any nails, particularly framing nails, remaining in the roof. The teeth project forwardly from the front edge of the blade. The nail receiving slots project rearwardly from the front edge of the blade. This construction increases the lever arm for pulling up the nails when the nails are in the ends of the slots and the blade Is pivoted up about the pointed ends of the projecting teeth.
The invention is particularly directed toward a roofing tool having a generally quadratic blade with a front edge, a rear edge, and side edges joining the front and rear edges. A tubular socket for a handle extends upwardly and rearwardly from the top of the blade near its rear edge. The blade has two integral teeth projecting forwardly from the front edge of the blade, the forward ends of the teeth adapted to be easily slipped under roofing material to be removed. At least one nail receiving slot is provided in the blade between the teeth, the slot extending rearwardly from the front edge of the blade, so that a nail located in the end of the slot is located a considerable distance from the front of the teeth to provide a relatively long lever arm for lifting the nail. At least the inner sides of the teeth are beveled to allow the teeth to lift up shingle nails.
In a preferred embodiment the ends of the teeth are spaced a distance apart sufficient to allow at least a portion of the teeth to straddle a wood framing member, the teeth adapted to be manipulated to help loosen a sheathing board from a roof framing member.